Tag Archives: Human Resources

Attitude, business life, Human Resources, Management

Get Stuff Done and Have Some Fun – A 20 Question Checkup From the Neck Up

Leave a comment

It’s Labor Day here in the U.S. We celebrate it by taking a day off. Something about that always made me laugh a little. The truth is, “celebration” and “labor” are rarely found in the same sentence. Apparently, somewhere between 70% and 90%  of employees do not feel engaged in their work. My experience working closely with community association professionals leaves me unsurprised (and saddened) by those statistics.

I got some interesting comments about an online job bank announcement I posted a few years ago for a client. I must have been a little frustrated when I wrote something along the lines of “butt covering, blame shifting, can’t do managers need not apply.” I may have used the term “retread…” I was serious. A burned out, disengaged manager just wouldn’t cut it. The client had a keen BS-o-Meter and needed somebody who would walk the walk.

It occurs to me I’ve developed a list of contrasts in my head – behaviors, character traits, and perspectives that seem to reveal the difference between managers who excel and enjoy what they do, and those who seem mired in mediocrity and misery. I use these to evaluate manager candidates. I also use them as a self-test to see if I am falling into non-productive habits. Here goes…

  1. Am I more bored or more curious?
  2. Am I intellectually lazy or looking to learn?
  3. Am I prepared or am I winging it?
  4. Am I focused on personal credit or team success?
  5. Am I covering by butt or am I taking ownership?
  6. Am I setting a positive tone and creating a space for others to mirror me, or am I mirroring others and leaving mood up to chance?
  7. Am I looking for ways to make a difference (no matter how small) or am I doing just enough to get by?
  8. Am I frowning more or smiling more?
  9. Am I stuck in the weeds or am I seeing the bigger picture?
  10. Has my thinking become task-based (my job is done when I check the box), or results-based (my job is done when the goal is met)?
  11. Am I spending more time explaining procedures or the principles behind the procedures?
  12. Am I spending more time explaining why things can’t be done or getting things done?
  13. Do I have a bias for action or stasis?
  14. Am I holding myself accountable or making excuses?
  15. Am I complaining about unfairness (that which I cannot control) or am I being my best self (that which I can control)?
  16. Am I focusing on the disappointments of the day or what I can learn from them?
  17. What words am I using more often – us and we, or I and me?
  18. Is it getting to be a J-O-B or is it a career (or better yet, a calling)?
  19. Am I thinking or just doing?
  20. I am blindly following my client’s instructions, or am I helping them make educated decisions?

The old adage is correct – you reap what you sow. When you focus on doing better and being better, you are far more likely to feel better and get more out of every experience. It’s so tempting to take the easy path, to be negative, and to blame others. I guarantee you see people around you who do that every day of their unhappy lives. That stuff rubs off. That’s why I like to do a checkup from the neck up from time to time. And if you pass the test and your situation is still crummy, perhaps it’s time to apply #13 and find a new situation.

Do you have a contrasting question to add to the list? Please share!

Human Resources, leadership, Management

How Do They Walk?

Leave a comment

Many, many years ago we had a receptionist who didn’t work out. She started strongly enough – she was mature, helpful and friendly. She even brought in tasty baked goods from time to time – bonus! But, over time, things got weird. This became one of the formative experiences in my business career. It gave rise to one of my favorite and oft-repeated refrains – “You really don’t know someone until you either marry them or hire them.”

I recall the story as told to me by Eddie, one of our managers at the time, recounting a highly instructive lesson shared by his mother, Viv. Viv, you must understand, was one of those ladies who you knew within five minutes of meeting her that she had lived a lot of life, she was going to tell you exactly what she thought, and she was probably somebody you wanted on your side in a dark alley. According to Eddie and my best recollection (after having retold this story a couple dozen or so times), as he tried to describe the pros and cons of our receptionist’s performance the conversation went something like this:

“Eddie, STOP!”
“What, Mom?”
“Just tell me one thing – how does she walk?”
“Huh??”
(impatiently…)”How does she walk? Does she get on up along, or does she shuffle when she walks?”
“Hmmm…come to think of it, she kind of shuffles…”
“Fire her. You’ll never change that.”

And there it was – one of the more valuable pieces of business advice I ever got, wrapped up in two pithy sentences. Those 6 words helped me pull together some guidelines that have served me well.

The Takeaways

• Little things about how people act can tell you a lot about them. Pay attention.
• Hire slow, fire fast.
• You can put people in a position to show character, but you can’t teach it. It’s going to be there or it’s not.
• Don’t waste time and energy trying to change deeply rooted behaviors. If those behaviors are not in synch with the values of the organization, it’s over.

There is one last lesson related to this story. Viv finished her life course a few years ago, yet the message lives on. You never know where life’s lessons are going to come from. There is huge value in taking the time to listen carefully to others and connect the dots to your own life and experience. Then pass it on. You never know how or when it’s going to make a difference. Thanks Viv and Eddie!